


When It Comes

by JewishDavidJacobs



Series: A New Beginning [4]
Category: Newsies - All Media Types, Newsies!: the Musical - Fierstein/Menken
Genre: F/M, Fluff, Romance
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-08-07
Updated: 2020-08-07
Packaged: 2021-03-06 07:28:41
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,260
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/25769695
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/JewishDavidJacobs/pseuds/JewishDavidJacobs
Summary: “Do you love her, David?”He was thrown by the question. He focused on the clothing he was folding. “It’s only been six weeks.”“I fell in love with your father in less than that.”“I suppose. I’m not sure if I know what love feels like. I think about her all the time and my stomach hurts when I see her, but in a good way, if that makes sense.”She smiled. “It does.”“I miss her when I don’t see her and I want to be around her all the time. Is that love?”“Oh, boychik. That’s a question that only you can answer.”
Relationships: David Jacobs/Katherine Plumber
Series: A New Beginning [4]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/1769605
Comments: 4
Kudos: 16





	When It Comes

David was nervously excited, but he always was when he got to see her. The plan was to leave Les with Jack around noon and meet Katherine for a picnic in Bowling Green Park. Mr. Jacobi, kind as he was, offered to have two meals ready for him to pick up just prior to it.

“Are you sure you don’t need anything, kochanie?” his mother asked as he got ready to leave that morning, whispering so as not to wake his father.

“I’m sure, Ima.” He kissed her cheek. “I told you, I’m getting food from Mr. Jacobi.”

“Yes, but still. I’m very excited for you.”

He smiled. “Thanks.”

“Do you remember Sari from shul?”

“Of course. She only moved away a year ago.”

“You used to have the biggest crush on her.”

“Are you lamenting that I don’t anymore? I was twelve.”

“And thirteen and fourteen,” Sarah commented as she moved past him.

“Regardless, I don’t like her anymore. Even if I did, she’s married and living in New Jersey.”

Esther chuckled. “I wasn’t going to say that. I was going to say that even when she was all you thought about, you didn’t seem nearly as infatuated with her as it seems like you are with Katherine.”

“Oh. Yes.” He smiled.

His mother squeezed his arm. “Do you love her, David?”

He was thrown by the question. He focused on the clothing he was folding. “It’s only been six weeks.”

“I fell in love with your father in less than that.”

“I suppose. I’m not sure if I know what love feels like. I think about her all the time and my stomach hurts when I see her, but in a good way, if that makes sense.”

She smiled. “It does.”

“I miss her when I don’t see her and I want to be around her all the time. Is that love?”

“Oh, boychik. That’s a question that only you can answer.”

David was starting to regret not suggesting that he meet Katherine at her work. He was anxiously unpacking and repacking the picnic basket, unsure of whether or not he should have it laid out when she arrived. The decision was made for him as he finished repacking it for the third time and someone tapped on his shoulder.

“Hey, stranger.”

“Katherine.” He stood to greet her. “Hi.”

“Hi.” She was smiling and he got the distinct feeling that he was being mocked.

“What?”

“There’s no need to be nervous.”

He nodded stiffly. “Right. No need. Shall we sit?”

He handed her a sandwich and a glass before pouring her water from a sealed pitcher.

“Where did you get all this?”

“Mr. Jacobi. He said out of all of us, we’re the only two he trusts to bring it all back in one piece.”

She laughed. “Makes sense.”

He asked her about her day at work and the article she was working on. He listened with fascinated focus and occasionally asked questions. The men around him often talked about how it was important to make a woman feel listened to even if you didn’t care about what she was saying. David had yet to encounter a situation in which he didn’t care. Everything she said interested him. He could listen to her talk for hours.

“What about you? How’s selling today?”

He shrugged. “It’s okay. Slow. It might be a buyback day.”

“I’m sorry, sweetheart.”

He would take a thousand bad headlines just to hear her call him that again. It was the most beautiful thing he’d ever heard. His cheeks warmed considerably and she giggled.

“Is something wrong,  _ sweetheart?” _ she teased. “Do you like it when I call you that?”

He nodded, at a loss for words.

“Then I will. Tell me more about your week? I haven’t seen you in days.”

“Not much has happened.”

“I’m sure that’s not true.”

“But it is. You lead a far more interesting life than I do. Why don’t you tell me more about your article?”

She smiled. “I’ve been talking about me this whole time. I want to hear about you. Seriously, tell me anything. It doesn’t have to be from this week.”

“Um, okay.” He tried to think of anything from his life that would interest someone who led a life like Katherine did. David’s life was repetitive in a lot of ways. He didn’t mind. He loved his family and friends, and never cared about doing the same things if it was with them, but a routine like his didn’t seem very exciting. Work and chores dominated most of his waking day and that compared to the life of an heiress? It was almost embarrassingly boring. “What kind of thing do you want to know?”

“Anything.”

“That really isn’t helpful.”

She rolled her eyes. “Okay, how about I ask you questions?”

“That’s fine.”

“So…okay, I’ve been curious about this. When and how did you learn English?”

“School,” he answered. “For the first month, I didn’t understand anything at all that the teacher was saying. We used to get in trouble if we spoke anything but English.”

“Really?”

“Yeah. Ruler to the knuckles.”

She hissed sympathetically. “I’m sorry.”

“Yeah. I don’t mean this in a negative way, but I assume, outspoken as you are, you got punished a lot in school?

“Not really. Believe it or not, I was a well behaved child,” she said.

“Not.”

“What?”

“I don’t believe it.” He laughed when she shoved him. “What else do you want to know?”

“Anything. What’s your favorite color?”

“Blue,” he chuckled. 

“When’s your birthday?”

“February twelfth.”

“What’s your favorite food?”

He looked at her quizzically. “You really just want to know  _ anything?” _

“Yes. I  _ like _ you, David.” She frowned. “You don’t seem to get that.”

“I do! I swear, I do. I just don’t know how to talk about myself.”

“I know.” She took his hand. “I like it when you do, though.”

“It feels…self-centered.”

“Do you think I’m self-centered when I talk about myself?”

“No!” he rushed to assure her. “Absolutely not. No, I love hearing about you.”

She smiled. “Then why is it any different for you?”

“I…honestly don’t know. Do we have to talk about it?”

“At some point, but if you don’t want to right now, that’s fine.”

He kissed her hand. “Thank you.” When she kissed his hand back, David knew. This was what love felt like. He was in love with Katherine Pulitzer. It was so natural. He had assumed falling in love would panic him, but it didn’t. It made him feel calm and happy and like nothing could hurt him.

“What are you looking at me like that for?”

He zoned back in. Apparently, he had been staring. “You’re just…you’re really beautiful.”

She smiled. “You’re really beautiful too.”

They chatted for a while longer. Katherine made him lay on his back and she did the same. They watched the clouds together. They laughed at how cheesy they were being.

“Are you ready to go?” she asked. They had been there for almost an hour.

“Sure.” David stood and folded the picnic blanket he’d borrowed from one of the families in his building.

“Walk me back to work?”

“I’d love to.” He would likely spend most of the walk worrying about missing another thirty minutes of selling time, but that was okay. Katherine was worth it.

He picked up the basket and offered his arm. She took it and kissed his cheek. “You’re a gentleman, Mr. Jacobs.”

“Anything for you, Ms. Pulitzer.” He meant it.


End file.
